Neutrophilic eccrine hidradenitis(NEH) was originally described in 1982 by Harrist et al. in a patient with myelogenous leukemia receiving chemotherapy. Clinically NEH represents various cutaneous manifestations with or without tenderness and pruritus. Histologic examination demonstrates a neutrophilic infiltrate within and around the eccrine gland and degeneration of the eccrine gland structures. Although the pathogenesis and possible cause of NEH remain unknown, it is probably an unusual cutaneous reaction to chemotherapeutic agents. A few cases of infection associated eccrine hidradenitis are found in the literature. We report three cases of neutrophilic eccrine hidradenitis. Two cases were associated with hematologic malignancy. The third case was associated with an infection of Vibrio vulnificus.
Drug Therapy ; Eccrine Glands ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; Hidradenitis* ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myeloid ; Neutrophils* ; Pruritus ; Vibrio vulnificus

BACKGROUND: This study was performed to examine the relationship between alcohol consumption and obesity according to facial flushing in Korean males. METHODS: The 1,198 men in this study were divided into four groups according to the amount of alcohol they consumed: non-drinkers (ND), lower moderate drinkers (LM, < or =7 standard drinks per week), higher moderate drinkers (HM, 7 to 14 drinks per week), and heavy drinkers (HD, >14 drinks per week). They were also separated into two groups according to facial flushing: non-flushers and flushers. Obesity and abdominal obesity were defined as body mass index of 25 kg/m2 or higher and waist circumference of 90 cm or higher, respectively. RESULTS: In LM and HM groups without flushing, the risks of obesity and abdominal obesity were not significantly increased compared to those of non-drinkers. However, in the HD group without flushing, those risks were significantly increased [OR, 1.55; confidence interval (CI), 1.01 to 2.40, and OR 1.63; CI 1.02 to 2.58, respectively]. In the LM group with flushing, those risks were not significantly increased. However, in HM and HD groups with flushing, the risks of obesity and abdominal obesity were significantly increased (OR, 2.10; CI, 1.07 to 4.16, and OR, 2.06; CI, 1.05 to 4.06, respectively, in HM; and OR, 2.16; CI, 1.08 to 4.34, and OR, 2.50; CI, 1.26 to 4.98, respectively, in HD). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that the risk of obesity is increased in moderate flushing drinkers compared to non-drinkers and in heavy non-flushing drinkers.
Alcohol Drinking ; Body Mass Index ; Flushing ; Humans ; Male ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Waist Circumference

No abstract available.
Embryo Transfer* ; Embryonic Structures* ; Fertilization in Vitro* ; Pregnancy*

No abstract available.
Hepatitis B Surface Antigens* ; Hepatitis B* ; Hepatitis* ; Humans ; Kidney Transplantation*

No abstract available.
Hepatitis B Surface Antigens* ; Hepatitis B* ; Hepatitis* ; Humans ; Kidney Transplantation*

OBJECTIVE: Fetal heart rate in embryos(6-8 gestational weeks) have been significantly related to fetal outcome, but have rarely been studied. We attempted to identify fetal heart rate during 6-8 gestational weeks. Our purpose was to determine the lower limit of the heart rate associated with a favorable outcome and to evaluate the prognosis for those embryos with slow heart rates in early period. METHODS: We prospectively studied 798 singleton pregnancies between Jul. 1997-Dec. 1999 visiting our hospital. Gestational age was calculated from the beginning of the last menstrual period in the case of regular cycle and was confirmed by the crown-rump length. Other cases were measured by crown-rump length or mean gestational sac diameter. Color doppler sonography was used to calculate the fetal heart rate in beats per minute as the mean of 3 waves. RESULTS: Mean fetal heart rate (+/-SD) were 114.08+/-15.40 bpm for group 1, 126.49+/-18.78 for group 2, 139.83+/-19.92 for group 3, and 149.58+/-23.34 for group 4(p<0.001). Prognosis in the first trimester improved as heart rate increased to 100 bpm in group 1 and 120 bpm in group 2. In group 3 and 4, most of fetus with heart rates below 110 bpm died. CONCLUSIONS: The fetal heart rate during 6-8 gestational weeks is associated with fetal outcome at the end of the first trimester and we can identify the fetuses that are in risk.
Crown-Rump Length ; Embryonic Structures ; Female ; Fetal Heart* ; Fetus ; Gestational Age ; Gestational Sac ; Heart Rate ; Heart Rate, Fetal* ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, First ; Pregnancy* ; Prognosis ; Prospective Studies ; Ultrasonography*

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Sound localization in subjects with normal hearing is done by recognition of interaural difference of time, intensity and phase of sound source. Individuals with unilateral hearing losses, deprived of the binaural cues, are expected to have difficulty in localizing sound. The purpose of the research is to investigate the sound localizing ability in subjects with unilateral hearing losses to localize sound in horizontal plane by comparing with normal control group, and to know the effects of age, gender, stimulus type and hearing level. MATERIALS: Two groups of subjects participated in this study. The first group consisted of 60 normal hearing adults, in each age groups of 10 subjects, ranging from teens to sixties. The second group consisted of 50 subjects with unilateral hearing losses. METHODS: Sound localization ability was assessed by means of an array of eight loudspeakers positioned at the azimuth of 45 degrees each in the horizontal plane at a distance of 100 cm from the subject. The stimuli consisted of speech noise, narrow band noise centered at 500 Hz and 4000 Hz, pure tone of 500 Hz and 4000 Hz at the level of 45 dB HL for 5 seconds. RESULTS: 1) Speech noise was the most easily detected stimulus (p<0.001). 2) The age and gender did not affect significantly to the ability to localize sound (p>0.05). 3) The localization errors for speech noise increased significantly as hearing threshold increased in patients with unilateral hearing losses (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that speech noise is the most easily detected stimulus in directional discrimination test and that the ability of sound localization is degraded as hearing threshold is increased for patients with unilateral hearing losses.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Cues ; Discrimination (Psychology) ; Hearing Loss* ; Hearing Loss, Unilateral* ; Hearing* ; Humans ; Noise ; Sound Localization*

No abstract available.
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mobilization ; Heterocyclic Compounds ; Korea ; Stem Cells

BACKGROUND: Trichophyton verrucosum (T. verrucosum) is a zoophilic dermatophyte distributed all around the world. In Korea, kerion celsi caused by T. verrucosum was first reported by Kim et al in the southeast province of Korea. Since then, many patients infected with T. verrucosum have been reported in Young-nam, Chungcheong province, and so on. OBJECTIVE: There have been few reports on the T. verrucosum in Korea, yet. Authors tried to offer the information on dermatophytosis due to T. verrucosum in the various aspects such as prevalence of each year, epidemiology, onset time of the year and season, distribution and characteristics of the regions, sex and age distribution, the clinical types, onset site of the body, and the relation between human beings and infected cattle and so on. METHOD: A total of 218 patients who visited Catholic Dermatologic Clinic in Daegu, Korea from 1986 to 2004, were finally diagnosed as T. verrucosum infection by KOH and fungal culture. The data were based on a retrospective survey of hospital records. However, whenever the information was lacking, we called patients to ask lists of questions for the investigation. RESULTS: The number of patients had increased every year since the first report in 1986. In 1988, the number was up to 44, which was the most. After the year 2000, the number of patients had been decreasing so continuously that there was no case in the year 2003 and 2004. As we see the distribution of province, 47 cases were from Daegu, 137 cases from Kyungsang bukdo, 29 cases from Kyungsang namdo, 5 cases from other provinces and cyties. In the distribution of season, 81 cases appeared in the spring, which was the most. Female to male ratio showed about a 1.2-fold predominance for male. And less than 15-year-old group was 41.3% of total patients. The most frequent onset site was face (36 cases, 16.5%), and the next were arm, trunk, head, leg, neck in the decreasing orders. Classifying the patients by the clinical type, 150 cases (68.8%) were in the tinea circinata type, and the next were kerion celsi type, tinea barbae type, agminated folliculitis type in the decreasing orders. Among 126 cases, 99 patients raised cattle with lesions caused by T. verrucosum, 8 patients raise cattle without lesions, 19 patients didn't breed cattle. CONCLUSION: This investigation is expected to help understand and obtain more information on T. verrucosum infection in Korea.
Adolescent ; Age Distribution ; Animals ; Arm ; Arthrodermataceae ; Cattle ; Daegu ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Folliculitis ; Head ; Hospital Records ; Humans ; Korea ; Leg ; Male ; Neck ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies ; Seasons ; Tinea ; Tinea Capitis ; Trichophyton*

BACKGROUND: This study was conducted to analyze the current problems in completing death certificates and to identify the correct method for completing death certificates. METHODS: We reviewed 262 death certificates in three hospitals from March 1 to April 30, 2000, and 119 death certificates in one hospital from March 1 to 31, 2000. We identified major and minor errors and analyzed and compared them retrospectively. RESULTS: A total of 381 death certificates were reviewed: 59 in Seoul National University Hospital, 101 in Ewha Woman's University Hospital, and 102 in Gachon Medical College Hospital, which has no education program for completing death certificates in postgraduate training, and 119 in Samsung Medical Center which has an education program for completing death certificates. 358 certificates(94.0%) had at least one error. There were only 23 death certificates(6.0%) without an error. In 182 cases(47.8%), there was one major error. In 321 death certificates(84.3%), there were more than two errors. A comparison of Samsung Medical Center with the other hospitals showed that the number of total errors was statistically different(p=0.001). CONCLUSION: There were few death certificates without an error in this study. In a hospital which has postgraduate training in completing death certificates, there are fewer errors than in other hospitals which have no training course. Emergency physicians actually certify many deaths, so they must know the correct method of completing death certificates for statistics on morbidity and mortality.
Death Certificates* ; Education ; Emergencies ; Mortality ; Retrospective Studies ; Seoul